Victor Wembanyama is coming off his worst game in more than two months. But that may not have been the biggest reason for the San Antonio Spurs' loss to the Houston Rockets. While Wemby, who scored 10 points Tuesday night, could have been better, two constant factors that have plagued the Silver and Black for most of the year reared their ugly head again.
“We really weren't getting stops, we were trading buckets,” Spurs guard Malaki Branham said following Houston's 114-101 victory.
The Spurs' defense slips
For the season, the Spurs rank 25th out of the 30 teams in the league in points allowed at 120.2. They haven't let their last four opponents reach that number, including holding the NBA's highest-scoring offense 19 points below their average on Sunday and not allowing the Rockets to get there either. Yet, off the heels of a 117-105 victory against the Indiana Pacers, a Spurs D that had been playing better regressed.
“Fewer mistakes. Fewer mistakes,” Branham repeated. “Better shots and I feel like we had a couple of good shots too that just didn't go in. But when that happens, we've got to get back and run in transition defense. That's just the biggest thing to keep improving every game is transition defense, stopping the ball so they won't get easy buckets.”
Youth blamed for more turnovers
The Spurs turned the ball over 18 times in the loss in Houston. When asked if, as Gregg Popovich mentioned, the team's youth played a major role in the lack of ball control, Branham didn't hesitate.
‘Yeah, for sure. Yeah, it definitely is.”
“If we miss a shot, getting back in transition defense was hard and ended up in a dunk,” Branham said of the effort against the Rockets. “We turned over the ball a couple of times. That's kind of why the game kind of slipped away from us.”
In getting back on defense in the fourth quarter, one of the young Spurs found himself in a bit of a moment Tuesday night. In a tussle that didn't escalate, Jeremy Sochan and Amen Thompson got tangled before cooler heads prevailed.
“We're used to him doing that,” Branham said.
“They were squabbling a little bit. Nothing too crazy, a little bump. I'm glad Jeremy didn't let that distract him from the game. Him just going out there and even playing harder after everything happened, that shows character.”
As for Branham, he matched his age with 20 points vs. the Rockets after notching 18 the game before vs. the Pacers. The second-year guard who's been a part of the team's rotation all season has scored double figures in seven of his last nine games after Popovich benched him for a couple of games in late January.
“It was a wake-up call, sitting down. I feel like when I got that chance I just took advantage of it and have been more aggressive on both sides of the ball,” the 2022 first round pick said.
“They want me to be aggressive on the offensive end, look for my shot and once I look for my shot, then create for others, so just trying to do that.”
Branham and the Spurs hope youth becomes more of a strength as the long season begins to wind down.
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